19 January 2017

Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes - Modern Ruin

Frank Carter (no relations sadly) is a bit of a legend in some circles,
for his work in his previous bands (Gallows & Pure Love), for the riots
that tend to occur whenever the Rattlesnakes appear on stage, I love the podcast he did with Scroobius Pip, they have had their songs used on WWE NXT PPV's, the
interviews have been everywhere and the shows have been getting good reports-
the guy (and the rest of the band as well) just give 100% whenever they put their
mind to anything. Their last album 'Blossom' (our review cleverly linked here) was
only picked up by this blog for our ongoing "Cover Roulette" series,
but it turned out to be one of the strongest debut that I personally have had
the pleasure to listen to; but here is the rub, now the game has changed for Mr
Carter and the Rattlesnakes. There tours are getting bigger (there is one
about to happen in the UK), the expectation has also grown since that debut and
the second album for any band is always a tricky game. Produced by
touring bassist Thomas Mitchener and mixed by Catherine Marks (who has worked
with Wolf Alice & the Foals), the press release uses words such as
"pronouncedly accessible" and the band themselves have hinted that
there is a stark difference between their previous work, this is something that
makes me wonder if they have taken their foot off the peddle or have they
changed direction? Well, there is only one way to find out......

01 – Bluebell

This is a brief introduction which sounds like a lullaby with a twisted end,
sort of like a traditional fairy tale.Not too bad, brief and to the point.

02 – Lullaby

Something has changed, if you were expecting another fuzzy hardcore punk
sounding record then you might want to move on. This is a polished alternative
rock slab of music, crying for the return of someone who is lost in a waking
nightmare and everything is dark and creepy.It is not what I was expecting and it takes a few listens to get over
that initial change, but it has also been stuck in my head and it has a
brilliant hook that sinks in and will not let go.

03 – Snake Eyes

The change continues on ‘Snake Eyes’
as with more clear vocals, loud guitar with also sound as if they have been
smoothed down and are trying to wrestle out of that jacket and there are gentle
percussions and it sounds good for what it is.Once again, after the initial impact of the change you can appreciate
what they were aiming for, it does have Rattlesnake mark and it does sound as
if the anger is rising at the possibilities of what happened the previous
evening; but I cannot deny there is something missing from this song.

04 – Vampires

With a low-rumbling riff that is reminiscent of Kyuss & Queens of the Stone
Age, ‘Vampires’ is the first song
that feels comfortable in its own skin for me.The song is about trying to break free from the blood sucking bastards
who are trying to get in and wishing for an escape and being left in hell.It has a moment that is classic Spaghetti
Western, long held notes and it sounds like it is going to be a real crowd
pleaser; it also feels natural from the outset and that is something that I was
missing from the first few tracks.

05 – Wild Flowers

A song about a lady who turns out not to be who she had previously claimed to
be, the song is another fast paced number that is well polished and as if it
has had all the rough edges buffed out of it and there is another tune
underneath which almost bursting to get out.I could be imagining it (and I probably am), but it is another song
which takes a while to gain traction in my mind and there is something not
quite right here; nothing bad, but not quite right either.

06 – Acid Veins

It starts off with a Country & Western swagger to the tune and it feels a
million miles away from ‘Blossoms’ at
this point.Lyrically and vocally
though, it is true Frank Carter and full of some of the most obvious lyrics
that the man has wrote; his vocals are also starting to crack here and the
screams are coming out.It is subtle at
first, but the further into the song you get into, the darker and deeper the
song becomes.It starts off a little
ropey for me, but it is a real grower and one which (once it sinks in) is one
of the bravest on the album and that has to be acknowledged and applauded.

07 – God Is My Friend

A song about the rage inside and being damned is the order of the day and
vengeance is to be extracted by the tooth and nail; the drumming on here is
that of a powerhouse, the riffs (whilst still cleaner than required) are heavy
and the vocals are damning and at time laden with uncontrolled anger and
retribution.It is a really good song, I
am not totally getting direction of this song to be honest, but the power of
the tune underneath is more than enough to give you a quick punch in the face
and drag you along.

08 – Jackals

Quick and to the point, this song is probably my least favourite on the
album.This should have been rougher,
sub-one minute punk explosion; but once more it is the familiar tale of being
too polished for me – I will leave it at that.

09 – Thunder

With feedback at the beginning, the song starts off with a lighter tone to the
guitars; however, (and this is a big however), this song is one of the biggest
of the band’s career.It marks out
everything that has been wrong with the world (the refugee crisis, hate crimes,
discrimination towards gays, murdering of people just for being who they are)
and it is starting to get so volatile and dangerous due to the blinkered vision
of these people.The song build from
that haunting beginning and ends with an explosive ending that makes this song
a cut above this album and is the first truly important track for me in 2017.

10 – Real Life

The dramatic side of the band is taking over here, with a big set of riffs and
a few moments of tension that give light to this song about a relationship that
is due to end and no-one is brave enough or is actually prepared to take that
final step.It is a number that feels
like it is almost at the peak of what the band is aiming to become at this
stage, but is the shine that has been added to the album a little too much?Maybe, but I am also not disliking it either,
it just feels as if there is something not quite right here.

11 – Modern Ruin

The title track of the album is a throwback to the original sound of the band,
it sounds like the unhinged band of old is back and everything is going to be
levelled into oblivion.This is my
favourite version of the band: louder than an explosion, hard hitting and
making noise that is uncompromising.If
it was not for the message behind the truly brilliant ‘Thunder’, then this
would have been the top track of the album as the song starts and ends with
such fury, passion and wondrous noise.

12 – Neon Rust

Even before I heard a note of this album, I had read a lot of talk about ‘Neon
Rust’ and a lot of people are giving this song a lot of praise.It is finally at this moment that I
understand what they were trying to do with the rest of the album and that they
succeed on doing here – it is stepping away from being a hardcore act and
trying to give the band a longer shelf-life.This ends the album on a high with an emotional out-let that makes the
walls feel as if they are coming down.But the song itself also gives more questions than answers to this
album, but it does end it on such a high note.

Now this is a problem I have struggled with since I was forwarded this album to
review, where do I stand on the new sound that the band are aiming for and
their step away from the hardcore punk of the first album?To be honest, I am still struggling with that
one as it is a change that was not expected (at least for me), but the album is
not a bad or mediocre album.I
appreciate that they are trying something new, I applaud have the balls to do
that and to stand on their own two feet and say “Here it is! Take it or fuck
off!” and making that step towards what they envisage as their new sound.But there are moments on this album where it
needed to have a little bit of a rough edge and songs that feel unnatural in
their clean shine.Also, there are song
on here which work in the new setting, plus ‘Thunder’ is my favourite song of
the year so far and the best statement about how shite the world is I have
heard in years.It is a real mix bag,
overall it is a good album and one that I have been stuck on for a while, I
just cannot give it more than a good mark sadly.

Welcome to the final round-up review of 2017! Similar to the Round-Up posts I put up earlier in the year, I’m going to be posting some bull...

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Album scoring system

0 - This is proof there is no deity1 - You're really are touching the bottom of the barrel with this one2 - If only there was some quality control3 - It could have been a bit better4 - Well it's alright, but still......5 -Not for everyone but played well6 - Now I see where you were going, but it's not quite there7 - This is good and well worth a check8 - Oh, now you have my attention and maybe my money, time and heart9 - Almost perfect....Almost10 - This is proof there is a deity(For albums that are too crazy to be marked)Crazy Cat symbol - This album cannot be marked, so here is a box of kittens

Singles/EP Marking System

0 - Only to be listened to by people bless with the gift of being deaf1 - Not so much on the bad that it is bottom of the barrel, but it can see the stuff down there2 - Not bad, not good - so average it is Zen3 - Decent, getting there4 - This is really good, well worth checking out5 - I wish I had extra ears to love this more(For Singles/EPs that are too crazy to mark)Crazy Cat symbol - This release cannot be marked, so here is a box of kittens